Parking requirements lookup

How this works

A parking minimum is the number of off-street spaces a city's zoning code requires for a use, written as a ratio: so many spaces per guest room, per dwelling unit, per campsite or per 1,000 sq ft of floor area. Phoenix's code says it plainly: its Sec. 702.C table states ratios that are "the minimum level of parking required" ^[1]. A preliminary site plan carries that figure in its site data table, as parking required against parking provided.

Choose the city and the use, and the lookup asks only for the quantity that city's rule counts. Houston counts general retail at 4.0 per 1,000 SF GFA under Sec. 26-492 ^[2], so the lookup asks for gross floor area. Los Angeles counts a hotel by its guest rooms: 1 per guest room for the first 30, 1 per 2 rooms from 31 to 60 and 1 per 3 rooms above 60 ^[3]. Tucson counts an RV park or campground at 1 per campsite ^[4], and Michigan's campground rules require 1.5 spaces per site, on sites or in a separate lot, for all campgrounds under R 325.1558(2) ^[5]. The retail and hotel site plan pages show how these counts shape a layout.

How the rules combine

A city's rule is often several rows, and the lookup applies them the way the code joins them. Where the code writes a ladder of first, then and above, each band's ratio applies only to the part of the quantity inside it: Milwaukee requires 1 per 500 sq ft for the first 2,000 sq ft GFA of a general office, then 1 per 1,000 sq ft above 2,000 ^[6]. Los Angeles counts a warehouse the same way, at 1 per 500 SF for the first 10,000 SF, then 1 per 5,000 SF above 10,000 SF ^[3].

Where the code says "whichever is greater", the lookup computes both and keeps the larger: a Fort Worth industrial use needs 2 per 1,000 SF GFA or 1 per 3 employees, whichever is greater ^[7]. Where a part is added, it is added: Phoenix self storage needs 1 per 35 storage units plus 2 for the manager's apartment ^[1]. Where the code sets a floor, the total never falls below it: a Fort Worth warehouse needs 1 per 4 employees, with 4 at minimum ^[7].

Two kinds of rule are shown as the code states them and not computed. Houston's hotel tiers read 1.0 per sleeping room up to 250, 0.75 per room from 251 to 500 and 0.50 per room over 500 ^[2], and whether each tier applies to every room or only to the rooms inside it is not verified in our research. Houston's general office reads 2.5 per 1,000 SF GFA or 2.75 per 1,000 SF UFA ^[2]: the lookup computes both and does not choose between them.

No row states how a code rounds a fraction of a space, so the lookup shows each figure unrounded, to two decimal places at most.

Maximums

A maximum caps the parking a site may build. Milwaukee caps general retail at 3.5 per 1,000 sq ft GFA, with exceptions under 295-403-2-d, against a minimum of 1 per 1,000 sq ft GFA ^[6]. Fort Worth caps every use at 125% of the minimum, with more allowed by planting one extra tree per 10 additional spaces ^[7]. San Diego caps downtown multifamily at 1.0 per unit under SDMC 142.0528 ^[8]. Where no maximum is verified in our research, the lookup states none. The multifamily site plan page covers how a cap changes a surface lot or a garage.

Where the site is

Many codes lift the minimum by location, so the lookup asks where the site is before it reads a ratio. Milwaukee requires no off-street motor vehicle parking for uses in downtown zoning districts, except within the C9A district, and no minimum applies in RED redevelopment districts ^[6]. A 25% reduction applies inside the area bounded by Capitol Drive, Lincoln Avenue, Lake Michigan and 43rd Street/Sherman Boulevard, within 1,000 ft of a local bus stop, or within 1,320 ft of a BRT station ^[6]; the lookup states that reduction and does not apply it. The Wisconsin page sets out the wider approval path.

Fort Worth applies its minimums only to uses on residentially zoned property or within 250 feet of one- or two-family zoned property, and for all other uses no minimum parking spaces shall be required ^[7]. Its "H" Central Business district requires no off-street parking ^[9]. Dallas removed mandates in three separate cases: downtown, within 0.5 mile of light rail and streetcar stations, and for historically designated properties wherever they stand ^[10]; the lookup asks about each one on its own. New York requires no multifamily parking in the Inner Transit Zone, the Manhattan Core and Long Island City ^[11]. Seattle sets no minimum for non-residential uses in urban centers and the Station Area Overlay, and in urban villages within frequent transit, hospitals excepted ^[12]. In San Antonio, IDZ-1 and the IDZ overlay have no minimums, and IDZ-2 and IDZ-3 may reduce by 50% ^[13].

Each answer can be yes, no or not sure. With not sure, the lookup shows both readings: the area rule inside the area, and the city's ratio outside it.

State laws over local codes

California's Gov. Code 65863.2, from AB 2097 and effective Jan 1, 2023, reads: "A public agency shall not impose or enforce any minimum automobile parking requirement on a residential, commercial, or other development project if the project is located within one-half mile of public transit" ^[14]. The law does not override EV-charging or accessible-space requirements ^[14]. The lookup asks the transit question in every California city it holds, except for a hotel: whether the law reaches hotels is not verified in our research, so a California hotel result shows the city's own minimum and says the transit rule is not verified for that use. The California RV park page covers the state's other site rules.

Colorado's HB24-1304, with state law effective June 30, 2025, controls for qualifying multifamily projects in DOLA-mapped transit service areas, whatever the local code says ^[15]. The lookup asks that question for multifamily in Colorado cities, and the statute's large-project exception is not verified in our research. The Colorado page and the guide to multifamily parking reform cover the rest of the state picture.

Cities with no minimum

Six cities in the lookup have no minimum citywide. Austin's Title 25, as amended by Ord. 20231102-028, passed Nov 2, 2023, sets no minimum for any of the uses in the lookup ^[16]. Portland's Title 33, as amended by Ord. 191310, took effect Jun 30, 2023 ^[17]. Denver's change took effect Aug 11, 2025, and minimum bicycle and ADA parking still apply ^[18]. Raleigh adopted TC-11-21, "Parking Minimums, Maximums, and Mitigations", on March 15, 2022 ^[19]. Sacramento's City Code 17.608.030 states: "There are no minimum off-street vehicle parking requirements for any land use" ^[20]. Baltimore's Council Bill 25-0065, Enactment No. 25-064, signed Nov. 3, 2025, repealed the minimums per use type ^[21].

In these cities the maximums are not verified in our research, so the lookup shows the no-minimum rule, its date where the row carries one, and the accessible-parking note where the row verifies it.